diff --git a/guardrails/utils/pydantic_utils/v2.py b/guardrails/utils/pydantic_utils/v2.py
index 84e469ee1..566086259 100644
--- a/guardrails/utils/pydantic_utils/v2.py
+++ b/guardrails/utils/pydantic_utils/v2.py
@@ -456,7 +456,7 @@ def pydantic_field_to_datatype(
     else:
         validators = field.json_schema_extra.get("validators", [])
 
-    is_optional = not field.is_required()
+    is_optional = is_optional_annotation(field.annotation) or not field.is_required()
 
     if field.title is not None:
         name = field.title
@@ -474,6 +474,13 @@ def pydantic_field_to_datatype(
     )
 
 
+def is_optional_annotation(annotation) -> bool:
+    """Check if a annotation is optional."""
+    return typing.get_origin(annotation) is Union and type(None) in typing.get_args(
+        annotation
+    )
+
+
 def construct_datatype(
     datatype: Type[DataTypeT],
     children: Optional[Dict[str, Any]] = None,